4.0
The Tangled Stars
By Edward WillettPublisher Description
This new novel from an Aurora Award-winning author presents a sci-fi caper of high-stakes interstellar travel.
More than a century ago, the network of MASTTs, the space-time tunnels that made interstellar travel possible, violently collapsed, the backlash destroying a lot of the solar system’s space-based infrastructure. Cooper “Coop” Douglas, a thief and conman, is in serious debt to outer-system crime-lord Eric Galioto. While trying to salvage a valuable chunk of a space station destroyed by the backlash, Coop makes a startling discovery: MASTT Primus, the tunnel that used to lead to New Earth, is open again. That raises an intriguing possibility: Coop could flee the solar system and his debt to Galioto and make a new life—and possibly fortune—around another star.
Accompanied by his first mate, the wisecracking, AI-uplifted, genetically modified cat Thibauld, Coop sets out to “liberate” the solar system’s only remaining functioning starship from an Earthside museum, enlisting the help of Laysa Grey, a former-lover-turned-cop on Luna. Along the way, he is pursued by Galioto and dogged by law enforcement and thugs.
And beyond MASTT Primus, the tangled stars await . . .
More than a century ago, the network of MASTTs, the space-time tunnels that made interstellar travel possible, violently collapsed, the backlash destroying a lot of the solar system’s space-based infrastructure. Cooper “Coop” Douglas, a thief and conman, is in serious debt to outer-system crime-lord Eric Galioto. While trying to salvage a valuable chunk of a space station destroyed by the backlash, Coop makes a startling discovery: MASTT Primus, the tunnel that used to lead to New Earth, is open again. That raises an intriguing possibility: Coop could flee the solar system and his debt to Galioto and make a new life—and possibly fortune—around another star.
Accompanied by his first mate, the wisecracking, AI-uplifted, genetically modified cat Thibauld, Coop sets out to “liberate” the solar system’s only remaining functioning starship from an Earthside museum, enlisting the help of Laysa Grey, a former-lover-turned-cop on Luna. Along the way, he is pursued by Galioto and dogged by law enforcement and thugs.
And beyond MASTT Primus, the tangled stars await . . .
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Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communities1 Review
4.0
bumblybee
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“The Tangled Stars is a space opera following Coop, a thief; his cop-slash-revolutionary ex, Laysa; and Thibauld, an AI-uplifted cat, trying to make the journey from one solar system to another. On the way, they need to steal a ship that can make that journey, avoid the space-cops, and keep a loan shark with a grudge from swiping said stolen ship - sometimes all simultaneously.
Like others, the AI cat was what drew me to this book. I generally prefer my sci-fi on a TV screen rather than a book, but for a cat as a main character, I was willing to give this a try - and I'm glad I did. Willett has clearly spent a lot of time crafting the world the characters inhabit, and it keeps the reader engaged in the story throughout. I never really felt like there was a lull in the action, or that the info-dumps were too excessive. While the human characters do seem to fall into cliche at times, the story itself felt fresh and new, and that kept this from being an issue for me.
I have two complaints, one more nit-picky than the other. The first is that there is a minor amount of continuity errors. An example of this is Thibauld shrugging in one chapter, and then chapters later it is mentioned that Thibauld is a cat and thus can't shrug. There are also a lot of pop culture references and idioms, which isn't a bad thing, but it did feel a little tedious having to read about how no one knows where they came from anymore. On the same token, there are things that don't really seem to make sense in a futuristic galaxy - are Christmas tree ornaments as we know them today still the same that far into the future?
The other thing I had an issue with is the fact that, after a certain point, the book relies too heavily on the plot. I find this happens often in genres like science fiction and fantasy, and while it may not be an issue for others, as someone who generally goes for character-driven stories, it might feel a little empty in comparison, especially considering that the characters do fit pretty snugly into archetypes. However, that's probably more a reader's issue than an issue with the book itself, and I'll fully admit to that.
Altogether, though, this was a fun read, and I'm glad I picked it up. It kept me reading and entertained to the end, and - assuming this is the first in a series - I would happily pick up the next book.
Thank you to NetGalley and DAW for providing a copy for review.”
About Edward Willett
Edward Willett is the award-winning author of more than sixty books of science fiction, fantasy, and nonfiction for readers of all ages. He won Canada's Aurora Award for Best Long-Form Work in English for Marseguro, and a Saskatchewan Book Award for his young-adult fantasy Spirit Singer. His podcast, The Worldshapers, featuring conversations with other science fiction and fantasy authors, also won an Aurora Award for Best Fan Related Work.
Other books by Edward Willett
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